That motherfucker! He lied, and I ate that shit up.
As I shook his hand, I lied as well. I, too, could play that game. Friends, my ass. Not even he bought that bullshit. Mark kept one from me before, and I’d keep this one from him now. Messing around with him and his “girlfriend” would be funny as hell.
The handshake extended longer than it had to, and Mark focused on our hands. His grip slowly tightened, and I knew that, just like me, he didn’t want to let me go. With my thumb, I caressed his skin, and his eyebrow twitched. Mark coughed before pulling his hand out of my grip.
“I. . .” He changed the gears to drive. “Since we’re here, we should get gas.” Mark coughed again, avoiding my eyes and moving to a pump. He turned the truck off and stepped down. Fetching my bag, I took my credit card out of my wallet and jumped out of the truck. When Mark noticed me running to him, he froze.
“What are you doing?” he asked as I walked to him and placed my hand over the hand he was using to reach his back pocket. He took a glimpse at it.
“This tank is on me.” I sweetly smiled, but his expression remained the same—a mix of surprise and confusion.
“I’m good, Dae. Go back inside, it’s cold.” He moved his hand, but I grabbed it again.
“No.” I tapped my card, and the pump beeped. “You have done too much for me already. Friends have each other’s backs, right?” I searched for those shy blue eyes, and he scanned me.
“Just this time,” he warned.
“Fill it up!” I stole a half hug before dashing back to the truck. Mark stood there, bewildered. He gave me an inch, and I would take a mile. After I climbed back up into the truck, I crawled to his seat and peered out the window to see him while he handled the pump. Mark had his head against the truck and was mouthing something while he held the nozzle. I laughed. I would go to hell for bothering him, but I’d also drag that beast down with me.
Mark finished and hesitated to get back, pacing. When he finally returned to the truck, I crawled to my seat, put my seatbelt on, and pretended nothing happened. Mark sat and peeked my way. I grinned.
“Dae. . .”
“Yeah.” My smile widened.
“Nothing.” He put the truck in drive and took off. Once he was driving on the main road, he moved a hand to adjust the fans, and I seized it, tangling our fingers. I needed to feel him, knowing he needed it just as much as I did. Touching his skin made my heart feel at peace. I missed him so much. Mark glanced at it, then at me.
“What the fuck are you trying to do, Dae?” Mark’s deep voice boomed in the truck, and I pressed my lips together.
“Me? Nothing! What?” I shrugged. Mark was protesting, but he wasn’t moving his hand away.
“Dae, I thought we were on the same page.”
“I don’t want to cause an issue with you and your girl. It’s not like that at all. This is nothing. Good friends hold hands,” I rambled some bullshit, and Mark grazed my skin before he let it go and shook his head.
“We are not preschoolers, Dae. I thought we agreed to a friendship, nothing more.” He placed both hands over the wheel, and I knew he would hold on to it as if his life depended on it for the rest of the way. I had an evil-laugh moment I had to repress.
“And I do, sorry. I won’t do it again,” I said and immediately turned my face to my window. All lies. Big-ass, fat lies! I would do anything to touch him. If Mark let me, I’d be wrapped around him like a calamari. Since I was already lying my ass off. . .
“How is your family?” I asked as if I hadn’t talked to them two days ago.
“Eh, my sister is fine. She broke up with that jerk,” Mark said, and I dramatically gasped.
“Oh, they broke up? That’s great!” I exaggerated my reaction. Mark’s expression changed. He was actually glad about it. Like me, he, too, was proud of Audrey for it.
“Yeah. I think a friend convinced her to do it.”
“Oh, wow! What a good friend that is!” Another evil laugh moment. Oh, this would bite him once he learned it was me all along.
“Yeah. . .” He mindlessly agreed with me. Mark was so fucking sweet and simple. I couldn’t help but love him.
“Has your mom asked about me?” I teased him, and he shook his head.
“No, not really,” he answered, and I knew that wasn’t a lie. Why would Cindy ask about me? She didn’t have to. His mother knew more about me than him. I smiled.
“Did they ever ask you what happened?” They for sure asked me, and I tossed that blame over my head and wore it like a crown.
“Yeah.” Mark shot me a simple reply. He might have been avoiding the topic.
“And. . .” I insisted.
“I told them the truth,” he rambled.
“Which was. . .” I made a circle in the air with my hand, waiting for a reply.
“It didn’t work out between us,” Mark said, peering my way, and my expression told him I was still waiting for him to expand on it. “Mom said it was a shame. She liked you. They all did.” Mark cleared his throat. At least he wasn’t lying anymore.
“Aw, did they really?” I couldn’t help myself, I laughed. Everything in me told me to push him. “I should visit them. Can I see her? I want to say hi. Oh, I know! Maybe we can get together for the holidays. Wait! It is the holidays! So convenient we are heading that way.” My acting was atrocious and futile. Mark didn’t budge an inch.
“Eh, I don’t think so,” Mark assured, but he must have felt cornered again. Time to mess with his sanity.
“What, do you think your girl will get jealous?” I mocked him with a straight face. I wanted to see if he would cheat on his pretend girlfriend with me.
“No, it’s not that. It’s just that. . . It’s weird.” He slightly nodded to himself.
“Got it. So, you would have brought me home with you, again, if it wasn’t weird for the roach,” I joked. It took him a second to get what I just said.
“Dae!”
“What?” I chuckled. “Does Roachel have no sense of humor?” It must have been hard for her—since she wasn’t real.
“Don’t mess with her.”
“Oh, never. You know what? Now that we are friends, I want to meet her. Maybe she and I can be friends as well.” I bit my lower lip and anxiously waited for what bullshit he would come up with. He thought about it and scratched his neck.
“Eh. . . She’s. . . I-I’m sure she is busy today,” Mark mumbled, avoiding my eyes.
“Wait! Didn’t you say she would spend the holidays with you?”
“Yeah, yeah, she will. But now she’s. . .” Mark coughed. “Working.”
“Wow, night shift and morning shift. That woman is either Wonder Woman or she is fucked, and the hospital is underfunded.” I laughed, and Mark grimaced. “Is that why she never texts or calls? We have been together for hours, and not once have I seen you write her a message.” I put a finger on my chin, pretending to wonder, but Mark didn’t reply. Come on! He could be more creative than that.
“She had extra hours. . . and since she is working. . .” He bullshitted, and I came back with another detail.
“You never told me Wonder Woman’s last name,” I complained, and he groaned. Mark couldn’t even remember the first name; there was no way he would give a last. I peered beside me to see him scratching his beard.
“Dae, I already told you to—” I interrupted him.
“Okay, I understand.” I decided to stop for now and not have him hurt himself. This was giving him a headache.
We talked the entire drive back. I dusted his shoulder a million times and patted his thigh each time I laughed. By the end, Mark seemed to be a bit more relaxed around me.
We made it back home, and he dropped me off. I narrowed a playful eye on him. “Are you for real going to let me spend the holidays alone?” I tried to guilt trip him.
“Yeah. Go to bed.” Mark put his hand in his pocket, took something out, and then passed it to me. It was my phone’s fucking battery. No wonder it wasn’t working.
“You fucking. . .”
“Go!” Mark bit the inside of his cheek and glimpsed away. Jealous, Mark was cute as fuck. I grabbed my things and opened the door. Instead of getting out, I jumped toward him and gave him a loud kiss on his cheek. Those wide blue eyes glanced my way.
“Thank you!” I scrunched my nose while smiling, and Mark’s eyes dropped to my lips. He was out of words. After taking a deep breath, he slowly turned his head to face the parking lot.
“Happy holidays, Dae.” Mark’s voice sounded robotic. He didn’t look at me again, so I just climbed down and closed the door. It wasn’t until I walked into my building that Mark left.
That evening, my holiday meal was cereal and milk. Aanya was gone, and I was alone, but I was happy. I had a chance with Mark.
After a couple of hours, Dan texted me to let me know he had my car and would check it in two days. That was when he would open the shop again. I told him not to worry. Mark was with his family.
Taking my phone, I texted him, “Are you home?” and he replied, “Yeah, at my parents.”
With my finger tapping the screen, I counted the words. Yes! Everything was changing. I lay in bed with my phone, and we talked for the rest of the night. Mark and I texted back and forth for hours until I fell asleep.
In the days after that, we kept texting as well. We were chatting nonstop like teenagers. It turned out my car just had a malfunctioning cable, and he said he had already replaced it and that I didn’t have to pay him for it. He dropped it off at my parking lot, and we spoke for hours. It was cold, so I invited him home, but he refused.
Mark took the friends-only things seriously. He was careful not to go anywhere where we would be alone.
New Year’s approached fast, and I knew I had to leave it all on the table. I kept asking Mark to go to Aanya’s party with me, but he hesitated. He never gave a straight answer, so I wasn’t sure if he would show up. Either way, I sent the address to him in a text with a message that read, “If you are afraid I’ll try something, don’t. No worries, I have a date.” I lied. Of course, I would jump him if I got the chance, and I wanted him to be my date, but he had to be there first.
Mark didn’t reply, so I got ready for the party anyway, and Aany drove us to the city. If he showed up, he would know I lied. We got to the building, parked on the street, and basically ice-skated on the sidewalk with heels to make it to the party.
Everyone in there was Aanya’s colleagues, who looked way too sophisticated. It didn’t take long for me to feel uncomfortable and out of place. Aanya walked around, mingled, and greeted the people she knew. I just stayed in a corner next to the snack table, stuffing my face.
“Those are good,” a guy told me, pointing at the steak and blue cheese bruschetta in my hand.
“They are, aren’t they? So fancy,” I spoke with my mouth half full.
“The free food is the only reason I come to these events.” He laughed, and I laughed with him. The guy had a small plate filled with snacks.
“I’m Aanya’s friend.” I extended a hand, and he shook it.
“I saw you with her,” he said, awkwardly staring at me. I blinked repeatedly, and he laughed. “Sorry, I’m a bit of a socially awkward person.” He scratched his neck.
“Then you should stay by my side.” I smiled.
“Why?”
“Birds of a feather,” I revealed, and he snickered. Taking a small cup of water, I raised it. He took one as well, and we clinked them before drinking.
“Gee, I’m glad I won’t be the only one gobbling at this table. How do you know Aanya?” he asked, taking a bite of his bruschetta.
“Oh! We go back a long way.” I nudged his arm and leaned closer. “We have been partners in crime ever since the first year in college,” I whispered as if it were a secret. “How do you—”
“Work.” He answered before I could finish asking.
“Oh, I see.” I kept chewing.
“She is very. . .” he started, and I filled in the blank.
“Crazy?” I blurted out, and he snorted.
“No! Not at all. She is very serious,” the guy said, and then it was me, the one snorting.
“No!” I exaggerated a gasp in surprise.
“Yeah! What? Is she not serious with you?” He was as surprised as I was.
“Oh, no! Not my girl. Are we talking about different people? That Aanya?” I pointed at that tanned, beautiful woman.
At that moment, someone behind me crashed into me, and he put a hand on the low of my back and pulled me closer to him to keep me from falling. I was glad he did because my heels were making me off balance.
“Thanks!” The man just saved my snacks along with my face.
“No worries. I have sisters, I know.” He put his hand down, and I smiled.
“You are cute. I like you,” I said with a grin.
“I like you, too.” He was a bit quiet, but I could see myself being his friend.
“Dae!” A low voice behind us called my name, and I turned. Jemal was here, all dressed up, and next to him was my Mark. He was handsome as fuck, wearing a navy suit. Gosh, he looked. . . pissed? Mark was fuming.
With widened eyes, I looked back at the guy next to me. Wait, did he hear us? I glanced back at Mark, and he was staring holes into the poor guy’s head. Yeah, he heard it.
Getting closer to them, I kissed Jemal. “Looking good!” I complimented him, and he fixed his suit before returning the compliment.
“Likewise.”
I was about to go kiss Mark as well, but he spoke first, stopping me. “Are we interrupting?” Indeed, he was furious. He kept staring at the guy. Aanya’s coworker didn’t notice Mark’s dark aura around him. Good.
“Oh, not at all!” I waved a hand, but Mark didn’t appear convinced. Jemal whacked him in the abs. He must have known.
“Come, let’s get a drink.” Jemal put his arm around Mark and took him with him. They walked toward the bar, and I didn’t miss Mark’s hands closed in fists. That man! He cleaned up well and was looking handsome as fuck. He smelled delicious as well. I needed some.
“That’s my man!” I said, capturing my new friend’s attention.
“Who? Tall dude?” He pointed at Mark.
“Yep, but he doesn’t know it yet!” I laughed, putting my plate down. “It was great talking to you.” I headed his way, and the guy cheered.
“Go for it!”
As I walked, I fixed my short dress and brushed my hair with my fingers. Mark was standing by the bar, so I sneaked between him and Jemal and leaned over the bar with an elbow propped on it and a hand on my chin, facing him.
“Can you get me a drink?” I asked, and a pair of angry blue eyes blankly peered at me. Mark looked back at the guy.
“Why don’t you go ask your date?” he spat, and I looked back at the lone man stuffing his face with snacks and laughed.
“That’s exactly what I am doing.” I ran a finger over his suit. So fucking handsome.
“What?”
“You are my date.” The bartender gave him his drink, and I took it.
“Dae!” Mark used a warning tone.
“As friends.” He groaned as I raised the glass to cheer. I interlocked our arms. “The man seems nice, even if I don’t really know him,” I honestly said.
“Then you should go back to him.” Mark tried to get his drink back, and I moved it away, taking a sip. He had a bad habit of drinking whenever he was angry. I was going to stop him.
“You said you had a date. . .”
“I lie all the time.” I took a bigger sip. “Surely I’m not the only one who lies.” I put the drink down and hugged him. “I only want you.”
“Dae!” Mark protested, but he didn’t move. He let me hug him.
“I won’t apologize for liking you. At least not today. If you don’t like it, suck it.” I snuggled closer.
“My girlfriend. . .”
“No worries, Rebecca is not here and won’t come. Jemal won’t betray you, I’m sure of it.” He didn’t even catch that I kept saying her name wrong. “I need you.” For the first time, he returned my hug.
“You will get me in trouble,” he spoke, defeated. Correction, I had already gotten him in trouble. My hug was melting him.
“Only if we get caught,” I joked, and Mark let me go. Before he could reach for it, I seized his drink and chugged it.
“Eh, that was mine.”
After swallowing, I patted his chest. “Was! Come.” Taking his hand, I pulled him to where people were dancing.
I would not call that dancing. Everyone else was swinging side to side with drinks in their hands and talking about their work. I didn’t care. I held Mark in my arms and got closer to his body. Mark just put a hand on my hip and let me dance as I wanted. Soon, the music changed, and my dance moves became sexier.
By how he tensed, I could tell he remembered the day we met. That day, I ground on him like a whore, and he loved every second. Turning around, I sensually swung my hips, and Mark placed a hand on my abdomen and pulled me closer.
When that song ended, Mark abruptly left the dance floor, coughing and adjusting his pants. Laughing, I ran after him, and we stood together by the bar. We talked with Jemal and Aanya, and when the time came, we joined the crowd and hugged each other during the countdown, looking into each other’s eyes. In the very last seconds of the year, I pulled him down and stole a kiss as the party horns went off and confetti flew in all directions. Mark didn’t protest or pull back. He kissed me. It was simple and sweet, but it was the first time we kissed for a long while. I missed it—the way his thick beard tickled my chin. I couldn’t contain the happiness.
When it was time to go, I acted drunk, so he took me home. I was tipsy, but not that much. Mark had gone to the party with Jemal and didn’t have a ride, so he drove Aanya’s car. That time, when I held his hand while driving, he allowed me to do it.
I pretended to be too intoxicated to walk when we reached my building, faking a few stumbles. Mark parked the car and helped me go up to my place. Opening the door, we found the apartment empty. Jemal left with Aanya when we left, but she wasn’t home yet.
Where the fuck did she go?
Better for me. We had the place to ourselves.
I asked what he would do, and he said he would call a taxi. My drunken reflexes were better than when sober because I seized his cell phone from his pants and tossed it in my rack.
“Dae! Come on, give it back.” He extended his hand.
“Stay,” I begged.
“I can’t.”
“It’s late and dangerous out.” I tried to argue.
“I know, and you need to rest,” he replied.
“So do you.” I countered. “My bed is comfy,” I voiced, having trouble standing straight. He gave me the stink eye. Putting a finger to my lips, I hissed. “I ain’t telling if you ain’t telling.”
“Dae, you are fucking drunk,” Mark groaned.
“If I wasn’t, would you have. . .”
“Shut up and go to bed.” Mark turned me around and walked me to my room. In there, he laid me down, took my shoes off, and covered me with my comforter. Before he could leave, I grabbed his hand.
“Stay.” He scowled as I begged again. “I won’t bite you.” I chuckled, but he shook his head.
“I’ll be in the living room. Sleep,” Mark ordered, trying to let my hand go. I raised my other hand and held him with it as well, pulling him closer.
“The sofa is too small.” I pointed. Fuck, even my bed was small, but I wanted him in there with me.
“I’ll be fine.”
“We can share the bed.” I moved aside. “Like good friends.” He knew I was full of shit, but nevertheless, he thought about it.
“Okay. I’ll stay next to you until you fall asleep, but don’t cross this line.” Mark drew an imaginary boundary line for me with his finger on my mattress and set the prize on the other side.
“Okay. I’ll keep my hands to myself, I promise.” I crossed my heart. That was a promise I intended to keep. It would be he who wouldn’t be able to keep his hands on his side. Mark took his shoes and jacket off and leaned back.
“I’m so fucking hot.” I kicked the comforter off me, making my skirt rise, leaving my legs completely exposed to him. He didn’t look.
“I loved spending time tonight with you,” I said and then faced him with a mischievous smile spreading across my face. “You know what would have been perfect?”
“What?” Mark made the mistake of answering. I moved closer and whispered.
“An orgasm.” I leaned back and touched my boobs over my dress. “Uuhh! I fucking need one.” I moaned, and Mark did his best to ignore me. Reaching behind me, I pulled my bra off, threw it to the floor, and went back to touch my body. With those off, my nipples were perfectly marked on the thin fabric of my dress.
“It’s been so long since someone else gave me one.” I opened my legs, and I could hear Mark groan. I softly drew a line along my thigh and slid my hand inside my underwear to touch my pussy. The bit of skirt I had on covered me, so he couldn’t see it, but I let him know in other ways.
I rubbed delicious circles around my clit and softly moaned. While moving them more rapidly, I allowed myself to unwind on the bed. I thought about him as I closed my eyes. The memory of how good he used to eat my pussy got me soaked. Mark covered me again with the comforter, but I didn’t stop pleasing myself. At that point, I was so drunk with pleasure that I choked back my breath.
“Dae, stop that!” I opened my eyes and saw Mark gape at the hand moving under my sheets.
“Aahh. I’m just. . . Uhhh, I’m so close,” I moaned louder, and Mark moved closer and pulled my hand from under the fabric. Just when I was about to protest, he licked his fingers, getting them wet, and dipped his long digits under the comforter and inside my panties.
“Holy!” Mark perfectly massaged my clit, and I spread my legs to feel him better. I held onto his shoulder, and my eyes got lost. He was so fucking good at it.
“Mark!” I moaned his name, and he grunted, going faster. He was staring at my lips, and I tried to look into his eyes, but my eyes kept rolling. That beast rubbed my clit perfectly, and I became a trembling mess for him.
“Holy. . . uuhh!” I screamed, coming hard, and he got two fingers in, curved them, and moved them fast. “Aahh, fuck!” I squealed, holding on to his arm, and he leaned over and kissed my neck. My juices splashed as I squirted for him. I had my legs quivering. Mark pulled his fingers out, rubbed my sensitive pussy several times, then took his hand off me completely. He leaned back down on his side of the bed with a huge, throbbing bulge in his pants. Mark rubbed it over the fabric but kept it in its confinement.
“Mark?” My chest was out of control.
“Go to sleep, Dae.” He groaned again, frustrated.
“I. . .”
“Don’t talk. Come.” Mark spooned me, hugging me tightly. We stayed quiet for a while until I opened my big mouth.
“What will your girlfriend say?” I tried not to laugh.
“We broke up,” he lied.
“Oh! Roxanne must be heartbroken. I know I was when you dumped me. When was that? I thought you said you had a girlfriend at the party.” I turned in his arms to look at him. Mark was thinking.
“Roxanne?” he asked, and I snorted out a laugh. “What the fuck, Dae?” he protested.
“I bet you already forgot the first name you gave me.” I chortled. “You are a terrible liar.” I hugged him tighter.
“Wait, was that why you laughed like a madwoman in the truck? Fuck me!” Mark finally caught on. He had no other path but to come clean. “Okay, I lied about having a girlfriend, but you have to admit, I had no options,” he acknowledged.
“Starting over with me was one,” I said, snuggling closer.
“No, it wasn’t. It still isn’t one.” Mark’s voice turned sad, but he, too, held me tight.
“Why?” I whispered that question, and it took him a moment to answer it.
“I’m afraid you will hurt me again,” Mark admitted.
“I promise I won’t.” My tone matched his.
“Am I supposed to trust a rat?” Mark kissed my forehead.
“Oh, so you know the costume is missing.”
“I saw you that day, all of it.” Mark let out a low chuckle.
“Ah, fuck,” I grumbled, and he laughed. Loosening my hands from around him, I softly smacked his shoulder. “Not funny.”
“You are right. It isn’t funny. It’s fucking hilarious.” Mark kept chuckling.
“Jerk!” I complained. What I wanted to do was suck his dick and make him moan for me between his laughter. I loved when he did that.
Leaning closer, I tried to kiss him, but he stopped me.
“This meant nothing. We were horny, and it happened, but we are not getting back together, Dae.” Mark spoke, confusing me. His words were saying one thing and his body another.
“But you are in my arms.” I kissed his neck.
“Because I’m a fucking idiot with zero self-control. Things will change.” Mark sounded determined. “This is the last time.”
“Things can change for the better. We can be together.” I hoped he would change his mind.
“No, we can’t. Dae, you and I are going in different directions,” Mark mentioned, and I felt even more confused.
“What do you mean?”
“What we want in life,” he vaguely answered.
“What about that?” I tried to understand.
“You have your goals, and I have mine.” Another vague answer.
“So what? We can make them ours. I can make your goals mine, and you can make mine yours.” I prompted, but he shook his head.
“Nah, we can’t. You don’t know my goals. We are better off apart,” Mark repeated his nonsense thoughts.
“I would know your goals if you tell me,” I insisted.
“Trust me, it’s for the best.” How could it be for the best when it clearly hurt both of us?
“But—” I started, but he cut me off.
“I don’t want to do this again, Dae. It was hard for me to let you go, but I did. I won’t risk falling for you again,” Mark said, and I smiled. He couldn’t fall again because he was already in deep. He had never stopped loving me.
“But things are different now. I’m different.”
“I don’t care. I won’t change my mind.” Mark remained stubborn. He had said all that, but he didn’t stop hugging me.